Rinker Q3 OB (2018-)

Brief Summary

With a 12-person capacity, the Rinker Q3 OB is a bowrider designed and built to maximize operator and passenger enjoyment on the water, whether that entails running around the lake, river, or protected bay, towing water-skiers or wakeboarders. Many of the boat’s standard features and options, including versatile seating, handy stowage, and non-skid on the boarding platforms and the transom walkthrough suggests that Rinker truly understands how its customers boat. Add a reliable 200-horspower outboard and the Rinker Q3 OB should prove to be quick to plane and have plenty of power to get to the day’s destination quickly and confidently.

Key Features

• Simrad multifunction display with chartplotter
• 5-position tilt steering
• Bucket style helm seat with flip-up bolster
• Backrest converts portside companion seat to an aft-facing lounge
• Wide transom walkthrough
• Transom walkthrough Stow-n-Step™ seat
• Kicker KMC10-Bluetooth-AM/FM stereo with weather band
• Walkthrough windshield
• Helm phone holder
• Limited Lifetime Warranty on hull, deck, and structural components. Contact the manufacturer for details

Specifications

Length Overall	23' 2'' / 7.06 m
Beam	8' 6'' 2.59 m
Dry Weight	3,315 lbs. 1,504 kg
Draft	N/A
Deadrise/Transom	20-deg.
Max Headroom	open
Bridge Clearance	N/A
Person Capacity	12
Fuel Capacity	50 gal. 189 L
Water Capacity	9.5 gal. 36 L

Engine Options

Tested Engine	Currently no test numbers
Std. Power	Not Available
Opt. Power	Not Available

Captain's Report

Contents of Report

• Mission

• Major Features

• Features Inspection

• Bow

• Helm

• The Cockpit

• The Swim Platform

• Options to Consider

• Observations

Mission

The Rinker Q3 OB features deep forward seating that make it safer to ride up front and has enough room for adults to stretch out. The port and starboard boarding platforms and a wide transom walkthrough should help make it easy to board from a floating dock. With seating for up to 12 passengers, the open cockpit is logically laid out with portside companion seating that converts to a rear-facing lounger or for a tow-sport observer. Today’s outboard power adds power, versatility, and features to this versatile design.

Rinker has a long heritage of boatbuilding and design innovation. In the 1930s, farmer Lossie “L.E.” Rinker began building fishing and racing boats in his workshop for his neighbors and friends on the White River in Indiana. After the Korean War, L.E.’s sons, John and Jan, joined him and established Rinkerbuilt in Syracuse, Indiana. Over the decades Rinker has refined its boat designs with the help of owner feedback. The Rinker Q3 OB is a reflection of Rinker’s commitment to their customers.

The effective overall interior layout provides easy flow for socializing underway or on the beach. However, it is the details that make the Rinker Q3 OB’s mission even more enjoyable, entertaining family and friends on the water.

Major Features

• Outboard Propulsion. An outboard gives the Rinker Q3 OB plenty of power and the space that an inboard sterndrive would have taken is utilized for additional seating and storage.

• Comfortable Helm. When the bolster is in the up position, the operator is positioned well above the windshield for 360-degrees of uninterrupted view. With the bolster lowered, the helm seat provides the operator protection behind the windshield. The engine-control binnacle is located near a padded armrest.

• Adjustable Companion Seating. The port-side companion seat can be placed in the forward-facing position of flipped forward to form a rear-facing lounge. Good for a tow-sport observer.

• Deep Bow Seating. The forward seating is deep to help keep passengers low and secure while underway.

• Stow-n-Step™ Seat. In the transom, Rinker has stowed a bench seat beneath a center walkthrough. To fill in the aft bench seating, that seat flips up and out.

• Simrad Multifunction Display. The integration of the Simrad multifunction display with chartplotter essentially creates a glass helm.

• Bluetooth Compatible Stereo. The Kicker KMC10 features up to 200 watts of built-in power, AM/FM/Weather Band, charging USB plug, and two sets of RCA outputs.

• Head Compartment. The fiberglass liner has gelcoat finish. A Porta-Potti or toilet is optional.

• Limited Lifetime Warranty. Limited Lifetime Warranty on hull, deck, and structural components. Contact the manufacturer for details.

Features Inspection

The Rinker Q3 OB has a length overall of 23’2” (7.06 m), a beam of 8’6” (2.59 m), and an approximate empty weight of 3,315 lbs. (1,504 kg).

BoatTEST.com has not tested this boat, but it is our experience and opinion that Rinker has a reputation for designing, engineering, and building boats with exceptional performance, ride, and handling.

Bow

The bow of the Rinker Q3 OB has wraparound seating. Two-tone upholstery with bead welded seams makes for comfortable lounging. Padded bolsters mean the seats can be used as legs-up lounges facing either fore or aft, or as an inboard-facing conversation area. There are grab handles to either side, to ABYC standards. An anchor locker on the foredeck has a molded-in fairlead channel for the rode. Angled cleats to either side secure bowlines.

All Boats Should Have Anchors. While the mission of this boat model is for pleasure boating, owners should not forget that all boats must have at least one anchor suitable for holding securely in wind and sea-state. The type of bottom – mud, grass, sand or rock – requires different styles of anchors. Some anchoring situations also call for more than one anchor to be used simultaneously.

Helm

The helm of the Rinker Q3 OB has a well-organized helm dashboard. The Simrad multifunction display provides navigation as well as engine and systems feedback. The leather and stainless-steel steering wheel tilts into five different positions, while the well-situated binnacle makes it a joy to drive the Rinker Q3 OB: The padded armrest lets the helmsman keep a hand on the throttle in comfort. Combined with the bucket-style helm seat with fold-up bolster, these features makes operating from multiple positions possible, allowing the operator to be comfortable throughout a long day of play. The walkthrough windshield offers easy access to the bow area, with an optional foldaway, latchable door that can be positioned as an airdam between the helm and companion consoles for chilly days.

Companion Seating

Opposite the helm is a forward-facing companion seat. The seat has a grabrail and padded armrest, and a covered bin for stowing personal items on the console forward of the seat. The seat has a backrest that easily flips forward, to create an aft-facing seat where the occupant can use the cockpit bench seat for lounging.

Console Compartment

Within the portside console is a compartment for privacy, which can be fitted out with a Porta-Potti or a pump-out marine sanitation device.

The Cockpit

The cockpit of the Rinker Q3 OB has some innovative design features that add versatility to the boat. The walkthrough transom makes boarding easier and lets swimmers or tow-sport enthusiasts get to the swim platform area. But when there’s a large crowd aboard and it’s a good idea to have everyone in their seats, the passthrough converts quickly and easily to an additional seat: the Stow-n-Step. The step folds up to form the backrest and the stowed seat base lifts up and locks in place. This creates true wraparound cockpit seating so more friends can join the fun in comfort and safety.

The Swim Platform

Abaft the transom, the swim platform has many features that add to the boat’s utility. It’s a two-level platform, with an upper level that stretches across the beam of the boat with a single step down on either side to platforms that extend next to the outboard. Grab handles atop the transom to either side of the walkthrough serve the cockpit seating and the swim platform. There’s a foldout telecoping stainless steel boarding ladder on the starboard platform. A stainless steel tow pylon stows in a flush fitting on centerline on the platform’s upper level. As an option, aft-facing Stow-n-Step seats can be built into the steps on either side. It is never recommended to allow passengers to occupy aft-facing transom seating while underway on a propeller driven boat. They should only be used when the boat is at rest and the engine turned off.

Re-Boarding Ladder. ABYC standards call for all boats to have a re-boarding ladder deployable by someone in the water. It must reach a minimum of 22” (.56 m) below the waterline. People should never board a boat from the water with the engine running. Completely turn off the engine before allowing swimmers to approach the boat.

Warranty

Limited Lifetime Warranty on hull, deck, and structural components. Contact Rinker for details.

Options to Consider

• Stow-n-Step transom seats (replaces storage)

• Folding ski/wakeboard tower

• Stainless-steel anchor

• Windlass with 90’ (27 m) of all chain rode

• Windshield walkthrough air-dam door

• Bow filler cushions

• Aft filler cushions

• Stainless-steel pop-up cleats

• LED docking lights

• Transom shower

• Cockpit table (stowable)

Observations

Rinker has long been known for their excellent quality and superior performance with its sterndrive- and outboard-powered recreational boats. Like many manufacturers, they have recently put more emphasis on the outboard market, which is an emerging segment. The Rinker Q3 OB is their latest outboard bowrider to be introduced, and her flexible seating, functional helm, and comfortable layout should prove popular. With the reliable performance of today’s outboards and the proven handling of this builder’s hulls, the Rinker Q3 OB should hold its value for years to come.